San Francisco / Castro redevelopment (# 0559)

A series of four photos documenting the redevelopment/urbanization of one intersection (Market/Sanchez/15th) in the Castro; each photo contains a link to a Google Street View of the area prior to the new construction.

When this era of redevelopment started in around 2010, it didn’t seem particularly objectionable since often it was replacing an old and unused or underused building, and seemed to be providing some interesting new design. Ten years later, though, I can definitely understand why my local friends see it as the destruction of the neighborhood, of wiping out much of its culture. By being typically 5 or 6 stories (3 or more stories taller than previous), filling the entire piece of land right up to the sidewalk with a vertical box, and following a consistent angular architectural design, the style overpowers what was the defining uniqueness of the area.

In this picture, I’m surprised that Beck’s hasn’t succumbed to the redevelopment demands – it’s one of the few old fashioned motels still in existence relatively close to downtown SF. What was next to it, and is being replaced, was a funeral parlor. Below is a link to the Google Street View of the same section, taken in July, 2009.

goo.gl/maps/rQF1tyVsxq4g3LQd7